Dazzle
by Andie Potter
Summary: "She feels little next to Piper McLean." Drabble. Reyna's POV. *Now a collection of drabbles
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own PJO, "Papa, Can You Hear Me?" or "My Man".

A/N: My first PJO story and only my third publishing in the fanfiction community ever. Constructive criticism is welcome. This one got away from me but I like it. It's told from Reyna's POV. The misspelling of "ray" was intentional. Hope you enjoy!

ETA: I realize Cherokee Barbie sounds iffy but this is from Reyna's POV and she is (presumably) a teenager and heartbroken. Sometimes they say iffy stuff. Please don't take that as a reflection of my own beliefs. I personally think it's awesome that Riordan actually features a heroine who is of Native American background since they are seriously under represented in today's society and media (and when they are, bad movie adaptations mess it up...looking at you The Last Airbender)

**Dazzle**

She'd been told she was dazzling once (by **him** of all people). She'll admit it went to her head. Particularly since it'd been after a _dazzling_ performance, a showcase by the children of Apollo of their best and _brightest_. And she was their best and _brightest_.

Standing next to Piper McLean dims those thoughts. Piper McLean, daughter of Venus (she is Roman and she refuses to call her Gods those silly Greek names, those silly Greeks in their stupid orange shirts) demands attention. Tall with a sickening body and even more sickening hair; she feels little next to her. (It doesn't help that she always feels little; she doesn't look like a typical daughter of Apollo, not next to her long and lean siblings with their blue eyes and long legs). She feels little and that stupid Valdez boy makes it worse. He is LOUD and annoying and did she mention LOUD. His voice is like a bullet to the head and she secretly wonders if that was what Gwendolyn meant every time she declared she would set herself on fire if she (Rey, _dazzling_ Rey) opened her mouth one more time.

* * *

><p>Those Greek children of Apollo don't look much different from us, she thinks. They too are tall and long and lithe and beautiful and <em>dazzling<em>. _Dazzling_, she thinks, _dazzling_ like she used to feel (and still is, to one boy though she won't see him, not yet anyways). _Dazzling_ like Piper McLean. Piper with her velvety voice and smooth hair and _bright_ eyes.

Dakota, snotty little child of Minerva that he is, can't help point out their similarities. Piper is little Miss Cherokee Barbie and she is little Miss Italian Diva (the similarities apparently lie in their exotic looks though she isn't even sure if she is Italian or not. She thought she was and then she looked at that son of Pluto, and thinks maybe not. And her looks, while exotic, are not beautiful. Her nose is dominating, attention-grabbing and her mouth is competing with the nose and her eyes are _bright _brown). Piper has her velvety voice and she has her _dazzling_ voice, her _bright_ Broadway voice that has more than once soared to Mount Olympus, straight to her father ("Papa, can you hear me?"), though she doesn't know that. She suspects but can never really be sure since Bobby's voice soars too and he is more a child of Apollo than she ever will be.

* * *

><p>The son of Neptune won't look at the blonde girl, the tall one with the enviable curls. This annoys her because she hopes that this blonde girl knows better than anyone how she feels, if the rumors are right, if those vain and useless children of Venus are right. She thinks maybe they could be friends under different circumstances. Maybe in one of those alternate universes Bobby is always raving about. Stupid <em>dazzling<em> Bobby who is even LOUDER than she is but gets away with it for reasons that will forever be unknown to her. She tries; she is a praetor for crying out LOUD, someone should respect her but they don't. **He** was the only one who ever really did and she finds out rudely what everybody really thinks when **he **disappears (when **he** forgets; forgets about **him**self and** his** Gods and most importantly her).

She doesn't feel too bad knocking Hazel out during practice; Barnacle Boy is watching and Hazel flips her blonde hair around and she can see the blonde girl with the enviable curls out of the corner of her eye and she (and don't let them say she was selfish) snaps. It was satisfying.

* * *

><p>That Will Solace, her half-brother (the thought makes her dizzy) tells her she reminds him of Michael. She doesn't care and feels like she should be offended but apparently Michael did not look like a child of Apollo either. He died in battle ("Battle in death is honorable" Lupa whispers).<p>

Deia died in battle too. That other daughter of Venus who threatened to take **him **from her. ("Battle in death is honorable" Lupa whispers).

* * *

><p><strong>He<strong> corners her after dinner that first week. He looks _dazzling_; his hair glitters in the reys of the sun and his eyes are _bright_ ("alright" her heart sings). **He** tells her **he's **sorry…she cries like a little girl. Like a weak little girl. Doesn't **he** know the hell she's gone through? Night after night staring at the skies, wishing her best friend would come back ("on my knees someday" her heart sings). Wishing her man would come back ("for whatever my man is, I am his" her heart sings).

She swears at him and tells **him** exactly what to do with **him**self and Cherokee Barbie. The reys of the sun are dimming and she runs into her cabin and hides the tears from her siblings. She dreams in Barbra solos and showstoppers that night. She wakes the next morning determined to _dazzle_.

* * *

><p>The children of Apollo are the first to unite; to answer Hera's call. Dakota, that snotty son of Minerva, says it is because Apollo was borrowed from the Greeks; he isn't a true Roman.<p>

He finds he cannot go into the reys of the sun for a week.

* * *

><p>She'd been told she was dazzling once. She smiles at the memory (a <em>dazzling<em> smile). The reys of the sun bathe her. She stands a foot shorter than her _bright_ siblings and cries "For Apollo!"

They _dazzle._


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own PJO.

Warning: There is some strong language at the beginning.

A/N: Well first I want to thank everybody for their reviews and favorites. Means a lot to a beginning writer! This one is very different from Dazzle and I'm not quite sure how I feel about it; I'm not used to writing dialogue and Dakota has a much different inner voice than Reyna, being that he's in a far different place emotionally and is far more what I picture the Roman campers to be (in my head at least): tough, unsparing, and ruthless. Let me know what you think; be honest and let me know if you think this style works for me. Also, if anybody has any requests for a character/ship let me know!

**Comfort, or Roman tough love**

"We should at least say something to her," Dakota remarks to Gwendolyn. Gwendolyn looks up at him with distaste.

"Since when have you ever cared about Trout Pout?" she asks, idly trailing her hands up down the flat surface of her knife. Dakota shrugs.

"She's a praetor. We can't have her distracted and moping about, not with war looming. You of all people should understand that."

Gwendolyn glares at Bobby, her hazel eyes boring into his grey ones. "If she's that upset over Jason's new fuckbuddy then she's weak and doesn't deserve the title. What she needs is somebody to smack her and tell her to get her shit together." Dakota wrinkles his nose at Gwendolyn's language; leave it to a child of Mars to express the situation in the crudest way possible.

"That's funny seeing as you wouldn't even get out of bed after Deia died. Or have you forgotten that little incident?" He doesn't know why he's defending Reyna. Gwen's right, he's never liked her. But hypocrisy annoys him, especially coming from Gwen.

Gwen flexes her left arm, its long scars gleaming white in the sun, reminding her of what Lupa had done in the aftermath of Deia's death and Gwen's breakdown.

"And it worked, didn't it?" she snaps at Dakota. He rolls his eyes, sneering like the ass he is half the time. Gwen stands up. "Well, do what you want. Like I give two shits about little Trout Pout." She mutters the last sentence as she marches off in perfect step, the sun turning her hair into a copper halo.

Dakota looks back over at Reyna, who sits alone watching Jackson and Hazel with narrow eyes. Hazel giggles and flips her hair every time Jackson looks at her. Dakota rolls his eyes and, with some reluctance, makes his way to Reyna. Her hair is down around her shoulders; Dakota thinks it suits her more than the usual ponytail.

"You know, you guys are a lot more alike than you might think," he says to her. She looks up, startled. "You know, you and McLean." Her eyes narrow and she flips her head back to the cloying flirtation that is Jackson and Hazel.

"I mean, think about it. She's beautiful and exotic with that voice like honey-" she cuts him off, her voice shrill and thin.

"You're telling me this why?"

"I'm trying to make you feel better. Maybe the reason he fell for her was because he still remembered you subconsciously. Like Jackson being all over Hazel when in reality, Hazel reminds him of…" he trails off, thinking of his new half-sister. He doesn't know if the rumors are true but now he thinks Annabeth and Reyna are more similar and that annoys him, because he doesn't like to think a sibling of his would have anything in common with Reyna. They should be far too wise for the sort of melodrama the children of Apollo often find themselves embroiled in. Well, that the entire camp is usually embroiled in. But then again, Annabeth is a Greek. That in and of itself says all he needs to know and has any desire to know.

"Anyways, like I said she's exotic and you're exotic. Albeit in a different way of course," he finishes. Jackson and Hazel have left, leaving Reyna with nobody to glare at but him. He's forgotten how intense her gaze can be; there's a brightness to it that even he in his self-assuredness is unprepared to handle.

"Are you done? Because you're not very convincing," she says, her eyes intensifying. Dakota bristles at the accusation of insincerity. He's trying to be kind, something that's quite outside his natural personality and he resents her rejection of his attempt.

"Not very convincing of what? You can't just sit around like this; you're a leader at this camp and you can't lead if you're too busy crying over Jason Grace. Besides, this shouldn't surprise you. It's not as if he was known for his ability to stay monogamous. This is just karma for you and him going behind Deia's back," he replies angrily. He watches as Reyna's jaw clenches.

"You guys must really love watching this. You don't think I know how everyone blames me for Deia's death? Like it's my fault that she just gave up after some boy forgot about her," she snaps, her voice rising a half-step with each syllable. Dakota can barely look her in the eyes, those eyes that are blazing too brightly.

"It's always about you, isn't it Sarafi? I'm trying to get you to pull it together. Jason's not our leader anymore, not now that the Greeks have softened him. Jackson's still too Greek, even though he doesn't know it. It's up to us Praetors to lead the camp now and we can't if one of us is sitting around crying about 'some boy.' Have you considered that we don't need a repeat of Deia? This isn't some stupid Broadway play you can pretend you're in. This is reality and the reality is the West is doomed unless we pull it together!" The words rush out of him; he hadn't meant to say all of that, hadn't even realized he felt all of that. Reyna opens her mouth but surprisingly nothing comes out. She resorts to storming off, like Gwen, her feet keeping time with a beat long drilled in the Roman campers heads.

Dakota is relieved to have that bright gaze off of him. He has forgotten, in his irritation with her attitude how scary Reyna can be and he chides himself for such foolishness. He's seen Reyna in battle; he's seen the way she blazes with energy, heard the way she shouts Apollo's name in perfect pitch. It worries him that that part of Reyna might be gone and he feels a surge of irritation at Jason Grace, handsome and perfect Jason who should be leading them, not dividing them.

* * *

><p>He's sitting next to Annabeth in the practice arena. He watches as Gwendolyn easily takes Bobby down and then as two Greek boys go toe to toe. He looks over at Annabeth, intending to ask their names but she isn't paying attention; her gaze has fallen on Jackson and Hazel, who have strolled in, Jackson cockily and Hazel smugly. He rolls his eyes; will the drama never cease? Reyna follows them, glaring at Hazel's back and he thinks that Reyna and Annabeth ought to have a chat that involves alcohol and a karaoke machine well-stocked with bad '80s ballads. Then maybe they'd get their heads back in the game.<p>

The two Greek boys finish, the tall blonde one (who's cuter than Dakota is willing to admit) winning. There's a lull in the action where Hazel laughs loudly at something Jackson says. He watches as Jackson quickly looks at Annabeth and back at Hazel, his confidence faltering. Annabeth squirms in her seat and for a moment, Dakota feels pity but he's already learned from his conversation with Reyna not to go there.

Reyna walks over to Hazel and says something to her. Dakota can imagine that intense gaze on him and he is surprised when Hazel tersely nods. She follows Reyna into the center of arena and everybody hushes as the girls pull their weapons out, Hazel's a long thin spear embellished with apples and some other silly symbol of nature. Reyna has a basic sword; this causes Dakota to shake his head because children of Apollo are weak with swords and better with arrows and projectiles. Everybody knows this, even the Greeks.

Nevertheless, Reyna is the better fighter, or at least used to be and he watches as the girls begin, slashing and twirling around each other. Dakota is relieved to find that grief and rejection have made Reyna's fighting even stronger and faster and it does not surprise Dakota when she knocks Hazel's spear a good twenty feet away. Hazel is distracted, futilely trying to impress Jackson who is now occupied with studying Annabeth. Dakota looks over and a small smile graces Annabeth's face as she watches the duo. He is surprised and thinks maybe the Greeks aren't quite as weak as previously suspected.

He looks back in time to see Reyna punch Hazel violently and Hazel go down, her blond hair flying everywhere. There is a stunned silence as Reyna stares at Hazel's unconscious figure and then the scrambling begins. Medics are running to Hazel's side and children of Ceres are jeering at Reyna, who has turned away from Hazel. She looks up, first at Annabeth who seems unsure of how to react—Dakota rolls his eyes at and makes a mental note to never again doubt Greek weakness—and then at Dakota, her eyes hardening. He gives her a curt nod and watches as she walks away, her shoulders squaring off.

He allows himself to hope that perhaps they're not doomed after all.


End file.
